Transcript Native American Cultures in North America

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Scientists are not sure how the first humans
came to North America but there are several
theories.
A theory is an explanation or belief about
how things happen or will happen.
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One theory about how the first humans came
to North America is that hunters came across
a land bridge between Asia and North
America.
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During the Ice Age, much of the Earth’s water
was frozen in glaciers. In some areas, the
ocean floor was no longer covered by water.
The Bering Strait, between Alaska and Asia,
became grassland and formed a bridge that
scientists call Beringia.
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Humans hunted the animals that lived in the
Beringia. They followed the animals from
Asia, across the Beringia, into North America.
Movement like this, from one area to another,
is called MIGRATION.
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It is believed that migration over Beringia
stopped about 10,000 years ago. Around
that time the Ice Age began to end and the
glaciers slowly melted, filling the oceans
with water.
Water now covers the land bridge between
Asia and North America.
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Another theory is that people traveled by boat
along the coast or across the oceans.
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The people who came to North America either
by way of the land bridge or boat followed the
migrating animal herds across North and
South America.
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Southeast
Northeast
Southwest
Pacific Northwest-Northwest Coastal
Plains
http://www2.needham.k12.ma.us/eliot/technology/les
sons/na_regions/index.htm
http://www.ducksters.com/history/native_american_tri
bes_regions.php
http://www.native-languages.org/kids.htm
http://nativeamericans.mrdonn.org/index.html
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The Inuit Indians settled near the Arctic, in
what is now Alaska, Canada, and Greenland.
Their homeland has a very cold climate where
ice and snow cover the land for up to nine
months each year.
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Because of the extreme cold, their were few
plants to eat so the Inuit hunted seal, whale,
caribou, and other animals for their food.
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Since there were few trees in the area, the
Inuit used other materials to build their
homes. They cut blocks of hard-packed snow
to build their shelters, called IGLOOS. They
also built shelters made of stones, wood, and
caribou skins.
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The Kwakiutl Indians were a large American
Indian group in the Pacific Northwest.
They built their villages near the coast or
rivers to make hunting and gathering food
easier.
Their main sources of food were fish and
other ocean animals.
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The Kwakiutl also found many uses for wood.
They built large homes from cedar trees and
then decorated them with wooden carvings or
paint.
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Because the Kwakiutl did not farm or herd
animals, they did not have cotton or wool.
Instead, they made clothing from bark. They
shredded cedar bark to make skirts, aprons,
and waterproof capes and hats.
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Kwakiutl villages had houses built facing the
sea.
Members of the same CLAN lived together in
a large house. A clan is a group of related
families.
Each village also had houses that were built
for celebrations.
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In the spring, summer, and fall, the Kwakiutl
left their villages to settle near good fishing
grounds.
During the winter months they returned to
their villages and lived off the food they had
dried, and used the time to carve, weave, and
hold celebrations such as potlatches.
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Today most Kwakiutl people still live along the
west coast of Canada.
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Because fish are plentiful in that region, many still
earn their living by fishing.
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Some earn a living by working in the logging
industry.
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The Kwakiutl carry on many of their cultural
traditions through dance, songs, stories, and works
of art.
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Lived in the Plateau region between the
Cascades and Rockies. They traveled on the
region’s many rivers and settled in the
valleys.
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In the Spring they caught salmon in the river
valleys. During the summer and fall they
gathered and hunted different plants and
berries. During the winter they settled in the
villages and lived on the food they had
trapped or gathered earlier in the year.
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The Nez Perce were once one of the largest
nations of the Plateau region.
Today they keep their traditional culture alive
and work to protect their fishing rights in the
region.
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The Hopi are among the oldest Indian groups
in the Southwest. They began living in what is
now Arizona before 1350.
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They are one of several groups known as
Pueblo (PWEH bloh) Indians.
Pueblo means “town” in Spanish.
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The Hopi lived in an area of dry land.
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They used irrigation to grow beans, squash,
and corn (their most important crop).
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Corn was their main crop. They grew yellow,
blue, red, white, and purple corn. They
grew enough for the year and kept it in
storage rooms in their pueblos.
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The Hopi used the resources available to
them to make containers to store their water
and food.
They dug clay and shaped it into large and
small pots. They were some of the first
people to fire their pottery with coal to make
it strong and hard.
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Today the Hopi still follow many of their
cultural traditions. They live in their villages
in the Southwest and continue to take part
in dances and ceremonies.
They are skilled at making traditional pots,
weavings, baskets, and silver jewelry.
Some Hopi hold jobs in local companies, are
teachers, or run their own business.
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The Pawnee lived in the Eastern Plains where there
was enough rainfall to farm.
They live in what is now known as Nebraska and
parts of Kansas.
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They settled in permanent villages near rivers and
built earth lodges.
A lodge is made using bark, earth, and grass.
These homes helped protect the Pawnee from cold
and stormy weather.
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Unlike other Plains Indians, the Pawnee had two
different economies. They farmed for half the
year and hunted for the rest of the year.
In the spring and fall, the Pawnee stayed in
their villages and raised crops such as corn,
squash, and beans.
In the summer and winter,
they hunted buffalo
on the Plains.
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In the 1700’s, some of the Creek people
moved to Florida.
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They wanted better land for farming and hunting.
They also wanted to avoid conflict with other
American Indians.
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These Creek people became known as the Seminole
Indians.
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They built their homes along rivers and streams.
Each village was made up of about 30 families.
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They hunted birds and caught fish from the rivers.
They grew corn, melons, and beans.
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The Seminole made clothes from fur and
woven grasses.
They traded goods with Spanish colonists in
Florida.
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Native American Book
Title Page-Native American Regions, Your
Name
Introduction Page-Theories on how Native
Americans arrived
Southeast
Northeast
Southwest
Pacific Northwest-Northwest Coastal
Plains
*For each region-5 facts containing this
information: natural resources, government,
economy, religion, way of life, etc.